LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) said today it has formed a Commercial
Banking unit dedicated to the growing and dynamic base of Korean middle
market companies in the U.S., many of them concentrated in Southern
California. Sungsoo Han, a 22-year veteran of Hamni Bank and Wilshire
State Bank, has been appointed senior vice president and senior regional
director of Wells Fargo’s Korean Division.

Prior to joining Wells Fargo, Han served as executive vice president and
chief lending officer of Wilshire State Bank, with responsibility for
all lending, including commercial banking, Small Business
Administration, home mortgage, commercial real estate, insurance, and
wealth management departments.

“Korean companies are more comfortable doing business with
Korean-speaking bankers,” said Han. “Taking a different approach than
other major banks, Wells Fargo is investing in local Korean bankers who
are fluent in their language but more importantly understand our culture.

Fluent in Korean culture and language, Han and his team will make
decisions on a broad array of loans and owner-occupied real estate
loans. This new, L.A.-based unit focuses on developing long-term,
professional business relationships with both Korean multinational
subsidiaries and domestic Korean enterprises. Wells Fargo Commercial
Banking lenders are empowered to make decisions regarding pricing and
structure as it relates to the individual needs of each business. Wells
Fargo offers a wide spectrum of products and services to meet the
growing needs of the Korean companies.

“Wells Fargo is very pleased to present Mr. Sungsoo Han and his unit to
the Korean community and its key enterprises,” said MaryLou Barreiro,
head of Commercial Banking for Wells Fargo in Greater Los Angeles East.
“His lending experience and diverse network of business contacts will
serve the Korean community and Wells Fargo customers well.”

More than a quarter-million Koreans live in Los Angeles County, with
nearly half in the three-mile radius of Koreatown, making it one of
highest-density neighborhoods in the United States, according to the
Korean American Chamber of Commerce of Los Angeles (KACCLA). California
is South Korea’s ninth-largest trading partner, while South Korea is the
11th-largest sources of foreign-owned and affiliated
companies in Los Angeles County.

"It is critical to understand and be able to speak the language when you
reach out to the smaller communities,” said Woo-sung Lim, president of
the KACCLA. “Business becomes natural when you understand your customers
and your customers understand you. And with Mr. Sungsoo Han on board at
the Korean Division of Wells Fargo Commercial Banking, it will
definitely help reaching out to huge number of Korean American Business
owners."

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a nationwide, diversified,
community-based financial services company with $1.4 trillion in assets.
Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides
banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial
finance through more than 9,000 stores, 12,000 ATMs, the Internet (wellsfargo.com),
and has offices in more than 35 countries to support the bank’s
customers who conduct business in the global economy. With approximately
265,000 full-time equivalent team members, Wells Fargo serves one in
three households in the United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked
No. 26 on Fortune’s 2012 rankings of America’s largest
corporations. Wells Fargo’s vision is to satisfy all our customers’
financial needs and help them succeed financially.